When we come to take his wife, he damned the court and ripped your warrant.
– Arthur Miller
The Crucible, Act 2. Ezekiel Cheever provides testimony against John Proctor, saying how he "damned the court" and tore up his wife’s arrest warrant. Cheever is attempting to cast doubt on whatever Proctor says and evidence he presents, so that he is not believed by Danforth and his court.